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EPA head says he'll roll back dozens of environmental regulations, including rules on climate change; Environmental groups sue over permit for West Virginia valley fills; Doubling down on care: Ohio's push for caregiver tax relief; Uncertain future of Y-12 complex under Trump administration threatens jobs, economy.

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Senate Democrats refuse to support GOP budget bill. The EU and Canada respond to steel and aluminum tariffs and some groups work to counter Christian Nationalism, which they call a threat to democracy.

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Farmers worry promised federal reimbursements aren't coming while fears mount that the Trump administration's efforts to raise cash means the sale of public lands, and rural America's shortage of doctors has many physicians skipping retirement.

As court decision looms, a push for better NC school funding

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Friday, July 26, 2024   

As summer winds down and North Carolina students prepare to return to school, the focus shifts to the urgent need for better public education funding.

The future of North Carolina school funding may hinge on Leandro v. North Carolina a decadeslong court battle about the financial challenges many districts face.

Matthew Ellinwood, director of the Education and Law Project at the North Carolina Justice Center, stressed the crucial role of state funding in ensuring a quality education for every child.

"We're waiting to see what the decision will be for that but there's a lot at stake for families who are feeling these lack of resources in their schools locally," Ellinwood observed. "People need to understand the huge role that the state plays in funding our schools locally, because of what our Constitution said and the rights that it provides to families."

In recent years, the court developed the Leandro Plan, a comprehensive strategy to ensure the state meets students' constitutional rights to education, from early childhood education to college and career transitions. Earlier this year, the state court reheard the case, which could determine the state's obligations but there has been no ruling yet.

North Carolina ranks 49th in the U.S. for school funding, with 92% of students in underfunded districts. Ellinwood noted the Leandro Plan aims to bridge these gaps.

"To deal with the shortages that we're seeing in teachers across the state and the number of teachers who are leaving the profession," Ellinwood explained. "And get back the nationally recommended ratios for nurses, counselors and therapists. It's something that a lot of families are seeing are not in place in their school for their health and mental health needs."

Ellinwood predicted the plan would also help address the child care crisis in the state. He explained rising costs and the end of federal pandemic funds have worsened challenges for child care centers and schools, leading to closures.

"I think the state is doing some kind of Band-Aid to try to keep the system going but we really need a significant investment there and that is laid out in the Leandro Plan," Ellinwood emphasized. "In a really, again, comprehensive way, we need funding through different wages for the quality measures, to ensure that those are met and continue to be high quality."

State lawmakers have approved a $68 million emergency fund for child care. Despite it, the state Department of Health and Human Services warned of more closures this fall without more support.


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